The Via Francigena

The Via Francigena, the route to Rome that starts in Canterbury, came to my attention a few years ago when my younger son gave me a copy of the book; Like a Tramp, Like a Pilgrim by Harry Bucknall, the story of his journey all the way. At the time I said that there was noway that he would get me to do that, but here I am. I'm not going to do the whole journey, I live in Spain, I can't see the point of crossing the Chanel in order to cross back again, so I am going to start in Reims and aim to get to Aosta this time and go back next year to walk Aosta to Rome. Maybe I will, maybe I won't, but I'm off.
Day 1 -2
My journey plans have been a bit scuppered as the times of the buses, to and from my village, have been changed, I can get out OK but getting back, on a Sunday, is problematic, so I have had to drive down to Ourense and leave my car there for 3 weeks, a bit worrying.  Now it's Santiago, Madrid, Paris and to Reims.
Day 1 -1
The less said about the journey the better, I had a late evening flight from Santiago to Madrid and a very early morning flight from Madrid to Paris, there was really no alternative to staying at the airport. Suffice it to say that T1 at Madrid Airport is superbly well lit at night, very noisy and the floor is cold and hard! I flew to Paris Beauvais airport, the Paris bit is a misnomer, the airport is small, unrefined and busy and today it was packed. Everyone on every flight, no matter which European country they had come from, had their passports checked, much to general shock and dismay, the queues were phenomenal. France is on alert, heavily armed military are to be seen everywhere, Schengen seems to have gone out of the window.
The flight had arrived early, which was just as well as we soon lost any time we had gained. Eventually I got to Reims. I started by visiting a sports shop to get walking sticks and a yoga mat, then on to the Cathedral.

Reims cathedral

The pilgrim 'welcomers' in the cathedral were very welcoming, I had intended to stay at the Diocesan centre but they persuaded me that I should go to the International Centre, I don't know if this was a good idea or not. It was very busy, full of Eastern Europeans who have come to pick grapes, fortunately I was in a room with just one other person.

I settled in and then had a good look around and then I sat and had a glass of the local brew - Champagne!

St Joan of Arc

There are 5 Poles in Reims tonight, they have walked from Canterbury, I will probably meet them somewhere tomorrow, but there are variations on the route for the next few days so I don't know if our paths will cross.
Day 1 Reims (Stage 70 on Sigeric's route) to Trépail 26 kms
The day was slightly longer than I had planned as I was staying further away than I had planned. It could have been shorter if I had walked straight down the towpath but I wanted to visit the Basilica of St Rémi so I went back towards the city.

Clovis, 1st King of the Franks

From there it was back onto the towpath. walking along the canal was fine except for the cyclists, there were lots of signs saying take care of the pedestrians but they just sailed down the towpath silently.

I tried to keep to right and not dither but there were lots of slugs to avoid and I do tend to day dream when walking! Then a canal boat passed, registered in London. I stopped to chat and watch them enter a lock, after that my head wandered off on its own and I didn't even hear the cyclist who was ringing his bell! Fortunately we didn't collide and neither of us was damaged. I met him further on and apologised as it would have been my fault if we had collided. 

At Sillery I left the canal, I went to the supermarket, to shop, but also in hope of finding a cafe and a toilet, but no such luck. I asked if there was a bar in Sillery, apparently there is a bar but I couldn't find it and I was told it was probably closed, so I walked on to Verzenay. The weather was warm and humid and it was mostly uphill, not pleasant. The walk was through vineyards, this being champagne country!

I got to Verzenay to find the bar open, I had walked over 15k without a break but there had been nowhere to sit down, here I had a beer and I made a cheese sandwich. I left the bar to feel little drops of rain, there was a seat in the square so I stopped there and got out my waterproof jacket and my back-pack cover, I didn't bother with waterproof trousers, at this point they were at the bottom of my bag and the rain was very minor, but OMG 10 minutes later the heavens opened. A thunderstorm with hail and water that just came straight down and then bounced back up again. I tried to shelter under a tree for a while but it wasn't very effective so I carried on, I got well and truly wet. After Verzy the marked route now goes to the left, so I was no longer following the marked route as I headed for Trépail, the walk was 3k through a forest, the first 2k on a gravel track then it became a mud track, fortunately by then it had stopped raining, I had seen the track on Google and I knew it faded a bit but it suddenly disappeared. I should have come to a t-junction and I hadn't I just came to broken trees and a kind of dried stream (I think there must have been a lot of rain over the summer) I walked up a slope off track and could see a path further on so I decided to continue, eventually I got to the T-junction and got to  Trépail. I was a bit worried about finding a bed as the grape picking had started, 100's and 100's of extraneous people had been pulled into the area to pick grapes. When I arrived at my proposed accommodation the lady looked a bit perplexed and asked her son if it was alright to use the upstairs room and he agreed. Apparently 3 of the Poles had arrived earlier and had been turned away but, because I was on my own, I was given a room in the loft, above the barn, it was still being decorated and the stairs were treacherous, it was the room the son would be using for the rest of the week, but I was fortunate. I got a bed. Actually it was a big room and all 4 of us could have slept in it, albeit not too comfortably but pilgrims are pilgrims.

Day 2  Trépail to Châlons-en-Champagne (Stage 69 on Sigeric's route) 24kms + 7kms to Sogny

We had breakfast at 07.30 and I managed to leave by 08.10 not bad because it is another reasonably long day. Down the road to Condé-sur-Marne and it is 'vendange' or grape-picking time so everywhere is very busy, lots of tractors. I walked mostly on the road, as most of the verge was filled with vehicles, but if I saw a car coming I made sure to step off the road and the drivers approaching me all pulled well out to avoid me, but twice I was nearly run over, this was by cars speeding up to overtake a tractor on the other side of the road, they made no attempt to avoid me and I had no idea that they were coming. I wasn't happy. At Condé I stopped for a coffee and 4 young Americans came in, they were US army based in Germany and perplexed by rural France. After that I headed for the canal. I was to walk straight along the canal to Châlons, no problem, but the signed route seems to go on and off for no particular reason, other than to make it slightly longer.

I turned off at Recy, at about 19k, as there are seats and I had a little picnic, not long to go to get to Châlons. Being Saturday there were lots of weddings going on, in France the requirement is a civil wedding in the Town Hall, followed, for those who want, by a religious ceremony, I saw several wedding parties hanging around the Town Hall as I walked passed to get my stamp in Nôtre Dame de Vaux, then I saw a bridal party walking round to the church and the thought crossed my mind; 'What happens when it rains?'

waiting to get married!

I planned to stay at the Youth Hostel but I went to the Tourist Office to ask about accommodation, just in case the vendange had got here as well. They told me that the vendange was not the problem but that there was a major exhibition on and everything was full, I would be very lucky to find anything economical.  I went to the Youth Hostel and it was full. My hostess of the previous night had given me the name of a family who host pilgrims, but I was loathe to use it as I planned a very long day the next day and wanted to start early. So I opted to do something fairly stupid and walk on a bit and look for a church porch or something.  I went to the supermarket to top up my food supply, had a hot chocolate in a bar, and had a little look around.  I needed to fill in time so as to arrive at the next village as night was falling.

Cathedral

I started walking as it started to threaten rain, then I saw picnic tables in the Jard Anglais so I stopped to have my supper, it drizzled a bit but it was OK. Then I walked the next 7k to Sogny, the church didn't have an open porch but there was a covered area next to the Town Hall, it housed the defibrillator!  The whole area was gated though the gates were not locked. I decided to stay here, the defibrillator flashed lights all night but I had a roof over my head.

Day 3 Sogny to Le Meix-Tiercelin 32 kms

The night was very cold but I did sleep a bit, in the end!. I got up at 05.00, had the breakfast I had brought with me and started walking at about 05.45. It was still very cold and it was misty but the route was mostly just straight, it was a Roman road, so it shouldn't have been a problem and, if I'd read my guide book, it wouldn't have been but I read my notes and I had written them wrong. I had written, 'turn Rt at 2nd intersection' and it should have said 4th, so I wasted some time going up and down roads that I shouldn't have been up. Eventually I found the right place and arrived in Fontaine (Stage 68 in Sigeric's route) Exhausted I sat in a bus shelter, near the church, for a good rest, I also topped up my water supply at the tap outside the church.

Sign on the gate of the church!

Then on to Coole where I stopped for my picnic, I felt better after food and a proper rest, then onward and, frequently, upward. I thought that this stage was flat but there were lots of hills. It is a very agricultural area and there were vast areas covered with peas and turnips, the turnips had a very distinctive smell!

In Humbauville I saw my first VF sign.

I also met two other pilgrims, an Italian couple who had cycled from Canterbury, we chatted for a while, then they headed off. I do seem to be getting a little bit of company every day! In Le Miex I stayed at a home and agricultural place of work for adults with mental health problems, they were very welcoming. It was great to get clean and to have a bed for the night.
Day 4 Le Miex to Brienne-le-Château (Stage 66 in Sigeric's route) 32kms
I had a wonderful 11 hours sleep and woke feeling really refreshed, I had breakfast and set off. The first thing I see is a sign for the VF.

This may not be the official route now but there are people around who are conscious of the historic route. The route is still the Roman road and very straight.

The next village was Corbeil, it was too early to stop really but I needed to take my fleece off so I stopped by the Mairie and the church, then I thought about toilet stops and decided to be cheeky and ask at the Mairie. I tried the door and it opened but there was no-one inside, I was just about to close the door when I saw a little sellotaped sign on the wall, pointing to the 'toilette' so I went in, I found a door with no sign on it but it was a lovely clean toilet with soap and a towel and another sellotaped sing saying 'eau potable'. Wonderful. Corbeil welcomes pilgrims!

Sign on the way out of Corbeil

I continued, looking also for a place to sit down, it was just fields, until I found the answer, just near a farm,

then on to Donnement ( Stage 67 in Sigerics route) here there was a sign saying that the road to Braux was closed but I had no alternative but to continue, when I arrived there was a burnt out bus on the road, fortunately no-one had been hurt. Here things went wrong, I decided to follow Alison Raju's Option A, I had made a note to myself not to do this but to take option B, when I had had Google Maps in front of me I knew why, but I had forgotten the reason so now I did what I had decided not to do!  All seemed well until I came to cross paths that weren't mentioned, and a very helpful sign!

I had no idea where either sign was pointing so I kept straight on and arrived in a little village, a lady here was very helpful and told me how to get to Brienne. Somehow I completely bypassed Rosnay and I had been really looking forward to a coffee there.  It is not easy to find a village with a bar in France! To start with I passed several lakes and I thought I would be able to sit down by one but they were fenced off and private, very ungenerous. I had to walk about 8 kms up the side of a fairly busy road but at least I arrived.

The chateau of Brienne at the end of the road.

The gîte-pelerin in Brienne is wonderful, it is an old hunting lodge behind the château, it is really well equipped and has a garden and clothes lines.

The beds are of the hospital variety, with a hard base in case CPR is required, but if I need it there is no-one here to oblige!

This has been my 3rd 32k day and I arrived absolutely exhausted, the last few k had been a great effort, normally I would stop at a bar for a beer when I arrive at my destination but the thought of taking off my back-pack and then putting it on again was just too much, I did buy a cool beer at a little supermarket when I did my shop for the evening. It was lovely to stop, once I arrived, and enjoy the beer, knowing I didn't have to walk any further.

Day 5 Brienne to Bar-sur-Aube (Stage 65) 28 kms
I took a little stroll through Brienne on the way out but I didn't manage to get a good view of the château, it is a psychiatric hospital now and is well fenced off.

In Dienville I had coffee and a croissant, lovely, then I took the official route, the yellow signs are kind of helpful.

    The walk was fine and went well until nearly at Dolancourt, then there was a major road junction and no sign for Dolancourt so I followed the sign for Bar-sur-Aube, especially as it said only 6kms!, then I realised that this was a major road and very busy and I would do better to return to the junction and try again, this time I found the sign, carefully positioned so it was not visible until you came at it from the wrong direction. It made the route longer but I was able to sit down peacefully and have my picnic and then go to a hotel for a cup of coffee and to use their facilities.

I discovered, on the way that I was still in the champagne region and I saw some vineyards, I hadn't seen any since Condé-sur-Marne and I had thought that I was safe of the 'vendange' but no such luck.
I also thought that the parish of Bar-sur-Aube provided some kind of accommodation but no longer, now they rely on the good-will of parishioners and it is grape picking time! Plus 2 of the usual volunteers are en route to Santiago, eventually they found some one who replied and who agreed to take me. I was located in a room above the 'pressoir', the grape press, I thought I would be with the grape-pickers but thy are somewhere else. I had a superb meal with the family, the company was delightful, the food was great and it was washed down by copious glasses of Moët et Chandon champagne. 

Day 6  Bar-sur-Aube to Châteauvillain 32 kms
The family left me alone in the pressoir overnight, left breakfast out for me in the morning and Etienne took me back to the VF so I could start again.   A wonderful family, I will never forget their generosity.
Whilst I was waiting for Etienne I realised that it was raining a little so I re-adjusted my dress a little, for a shower! A few minutes after he dropped me off  I realised that  the rain was getting heavier so I stopped and got totally togged up in wet gear.  To start with on my walk I was competing with cars, vans and tractors as everyone rushed to get wet picking grapes.  I spent much of the day following signs and much of the day not.  The walk to Clairvaux was through forest.

then it was onto roads for most of the way.

Another fenced in lake!

Eventually I arrived in Châteauvillain, my feet ached after so many 32k days, I knew that I had to try and reduce this, it is too much. The gîte-pelerin here is wonderful, yet again, but after walking through the town to get to the Mairie I then had to retrace my steps to find the flat and then walk further again to find a supermarket, as the shop in town has shut. I really wanted to sit down and have a beer but bars seem to be none existent.  

 Day 7 Châteauvillain to St. Loup-sur-Aujon 24 kms
I never knew there were so many woods in France. The first part of the walk was round the edge of the Parc au Daims, I should have gone through the park but it doesn't open until 09.00. I managed to see a few deer but I never managed to get my camera ready in time, then it was 4 interminable kms on a straight gravel path through woods, it seemed to go on forever, I saw various wild-life, some deer and some I'm not quite sure what, they would cross my path but would be always just too far away to see clearly.  I was not following official signs, when I had arrived on the edge of Châteauvillain the signs pointed straight out of town, I don't know where they went next but the mornings walk had started with a little man on a wall, there are people holding to the old route!

Sign on the way out

There were occasions when I doubted that I was on the right track but there wasn't really any room for mistake, it was straight.

It was a relief to get out of the woods and into Cours l'Eveque, where I could sit down for a rest, after that it was all road walking. I'm used to road walking but I think a heavy back pack makes everything worse, my feet are tired. 

Arc-en Barrois

My lunch spot

 In St. Loup I stayed at the convent, an enormous place with only 7 nuns and not one of them is French. Whilst in Cours l'Eveque I wen to the Tourist Office and I asked the young man there to phone the convent for me, to save my French, but the 1st language of the convent is English! They are wonderfully generous, I am really impressed with the wonderful kindness I have met on this walk. I seem to be overusing the word wonderful but I can't think of another.